Great quote related to debt and not saving…
I liked this quote from today’s Telegraph…
“People are acting as if they expect to be able to fund a longer and longer retirement with less and less saving.”
Apparently, only 1 in 4 people in their 20’s in England now pay into a private pension, compared to 1 in 3 just five years ago.
I like to return to this theme once in a while… it’s a personal goal of mine to avoid debt (including a mortgage… the big scam) and become debt free (scamfree) as soon as possible. I keep reading articles online and books offline to increase my financial education and avoid all the financial “scams” that people fall for. Believe it or not, I was reading a book by the hypnotist Paul McKenna and even he was talking about how to obtain financial freedom. He was adding up all the bit ticket purchases you make in a lifetime (house, college education for your kids, cars, holidays) and then adding to that the retirement pot of cash you’ll need… and his example came to a total of £1.25 million needed to secure financial independence and a happy retirement. (about $2.3 million!)
Just like I said in this post… we have to stop thinking about a “million” as a lot of money. You may well have to earn that, or something in that ballpark, in your lifetime to pay off your purchases and expenses and retire happily. Perhaps you’re comfortable earning that amount by the time you’re “expected” to retire at 65/67/70.
Personally, I’d like to “retire” as soon as possible. My “scamfree” date is Jan 2008… perhaps a little earlier… and then I plan to build a retirement pot. Why don’t you join me in this crusade? 
Other posts about debt… here and here .
